Banning Child Labor Pushes Street Children into Crime

According to some reports, there are more than 400,000 street children in India. An analysis of the crime records from 2011 reveals that, in India, 1,408 street children were killed and 1,408 others were raped in 2010. In that year, in the capital city alone 29 children were murdered and 304 were raped.

But these figures represent only a small fraction of the crimes committed against street children. Vast majority of the crimes against street children never get reported.

The world over, as per the estimates of the United Nations, there are up to 150 million street children. Almost every city in the world, even the biggest and most developed ones, have street children. These children are vulnerable to all forms of exploitation and abuse.

The condition of many of the orphanages is so bad that the street children often abscond from these homes. Instead of doing the job of protecting and educating the children, some orphanages turn into exploitation centers.

With such a shocking state of affairs you may ask why are the intellectuals and politicians in most countries enacting and enforcing laws to ban child labor?